geneva*knitters

2006-09-11T04:25:00.000-07:00

Can you believe it? Seven months' silence! the main reason for my abismal lack of updates on the Helvetic kntting community is that we've sort of moved here:
stitchnbitchgeneva and we now meet, regular as clockwork, at the Starbucks cafe (near hotel des bergues) every Wednesday from about 6.30 ish. That site is regularly updated with members and messages and provdies most up-to-date info on the meets. But now autumn is drawing near, I feel the need to gather up my sticks again and a desire to share news of all the knitting and stitching related events that are coming up in the area.

Coming up next month is the annual Creations and Savoir Faire event held in Lyon and Paris. Its the 10th anniversary this year, so should be a good one.

Fans of the fabulously inspiring Marie Claire Idées magazine will be thrilled to know they're holding their first ever creative 'salon' in Paris, held in October.

Also in October (14 - 21st) the UK is holding National Knitting Week with events and workshops around the country.

Now I've got myself back on track with knitting news, I promise to try and most more regularly on here!

Events and Paris Show

2006-02-23T02:51:00.000-08:00

I usually post information relating to craft shows and activities in the UK, but for once I have update on stuff happening slightly closer to home.

The Fete de L'aiguille is a celebration of all things needle-y, from knitting to emboridery to patchwork. The fair runs from Friday 10th to Sunday 12th March just outside Paris, in the Parc Floral, Vincennes.

Check out the official website for more about the show.

Also, the excellent Marie Claire Idées magazine runs regular creative 'ateliers' in Paris, where for a couple of hours in a café you can learn brooch making, how to sew bags, kids stuff, etc. Good to know for those in Paris for a long weekend and would like to spend time doing something creative. Find out more about the workshops and get programme details.

'Stitch 'n Bitch' Under Fire

2006-02-21T01:07:00.000-08:00

The name 'Stitch and Bitch' is under attack as cease and desist orders have been issued by New York company, Sew Fast Sew Easy Inc. The company is claiming rights to the wording 'Stitch and Bitch' as company creator, Elissa Meyrich claims she owns the rights to the phrase and wants knitting circles to stop using it. As a result, knitting groups are being forced to change their names, replacing Stitch and Bitch with SNB or other alternatives.

The Daily Telegraph newspaper reports that "Meyrich says she coined the name in 1997 and that groups are infringing the trademark she secured for Stitch'N'Bitch café©".

The article continues: "...many knitters are furious and refuse to comply, saying the phrase dates from the Second World War and Miss Meyrich has no rights."

However, knitting communities may still win on a technicality. A post on knitting blog lissa kay.com suggests that Debbie Stoller, founder of the worldwide Stitch n Bitch movement may own the rights to 'Stitch 'n Bitch' (with an 'n') and that Meyrich has 'Stitch and Bitch'...

Read The Telegraph article in full

Check out Sew Fast Sew Easy to see what they have to say.

Read about what's being said about the issue on knitting blogs.

Time just flew...

2006-02-16T04:58:00.000-08:00

Omigod, I've had no time to update this blog. many apologies. To make up for it, here's a peek into a particularly inspirational Parisian universe - a site dedicated to individual artists and all the fabulous things they make. Not just reserved for knitters, also many inspiring artefacts for those who sew and generally just love making things, especially the funky things for kids. Knitting updates to come soon.

New Year, New Knits

2006-01-25T06:53:00.000-08:00

Just to let you know that, yes, we're back - we still meet each Wednesday from 6.30 / 7 ish in the Recyclables café. We slacked off a bit over the holidays, but now we're back as usual. Hope to see you there soon.

Record Wool Sales Reports UK Department Store

2005-12-06T03:05:00.000-08:00

Yesterday the BBC announced that John Lewis, one the UK's biggest department store chains has reported record sales of wool. Much of the interest is attributed to celebrity endorsement of knitting as a funky past-time. Read the BBC's article.

PS. We're still trying to give a more balanced view of knitting news in Europe, especially Switzerland. Unfortunately there is no Swiss national knitting association, although the friendly people at strickmeisterschaften, organisers of the Swiss speed-knitting championships, said they may be setting one up next year. Watch this space.

More About...Swiss Speed-Knitting Championships

2005-12-06T02:40:00.000-08:00

For those of you interested in the Swiss Knitting Championships that took place a couple of weeks ago, I translated the articles available in the Swiss press. Links to the organiser are below, and they also have news of a similar competition in 2006.

"A woman has won the first Swiss knitting championships which were held in Kirchberg, Switzerland on November 20th, 2005. The competition was organised by the Swiss knitting championship association, Strickmeisterschaften.

In just one hour, Mrs. Helen Rehmann managed to knit the front of a jumper. In the men’s group, however, the fastest male knitter knitted a piece the size of a large handkerchief.

Having knit 5904 stitches in 60 minutes (equal to more than one and a half stitches per second) Helen Rehmann took home the title of fastest Swiss Champion. Hans-Rudolf Wahl, winner in the men’s group, managed 3777 stitches in the same time.

The aim of the competition was to cast on 40 stitches and knit as many rows as possible in 60 minutes. Needles were clicking away at a "hair-raising speed", commented the organizers.

Seventy-three people, of which seven were men, participated in the final. In the run up to the championship, 16 qualifying regional competitions had attracted interested from over 500 fans."

For more information about the competition, visit strickmeisterscaften.ch

2005-12-05T01:27:00.000-08:00

Mmm…Monday morning is not quite as difficult when you’ve had a wonderful wool-themed weekend like mine! Yes it had all the right ingredients – stumbling across a sale in a wool shop (Bergere de France) - granted, its not for not for wool purists, as most of their products are wool mix, but who cares at 2 euros a ball? Secondly, my non-driver status meant I could happily knit away in the car whilst being safely driven to and fro my destination…a bit like the queen. And then, whilst sifting through the daily round of knitting news this morning, I stumbled across knitcases, a UK-based company who take luxury knitting to another level with their kits of gorgeous Italian wools, mother-of-pearl buttons and bamboo needles.

Spreading the Word

2005-12-02T02:23:00.000-08:00

Great news - the British Hand Knitting Confederation (BHKC) have added us to their list of knitting groups. View our listing (at the foot of the page) and check out UK groups. The BHKC are the definitive guide to what's going on around the UK in terms of knitting, and also organise events, such as the Speed Knitting and Crocheting Championships, which will take place at Alexandra Palace next October. One for us to attend, perhaps?!

Thursday Best of: The Weird and Wonderful

2005-11-24T03:49:00.000-08:00

We can’t explain it, but we love it – Matie Trew “likes to make strange things” and we think she’s fabulous. We especially like her knitted human internal organs.

Picture from Matie Trew's website, Strange But Trewe, 2005.

Knitting in the News

2005-11-24T03:33:00.000-08:00

As we know, knitting is big news in the UK. After the States, Britain is one of the places that has really embraced the knitting trend over the last few years. Knitting is getting a more prominent profile, with the BBC and major newspapers often running articles on this fabulous pasttime. Below we bring the best of this week’s knitting news.

On Monday, the Telegraph featured a piece on customising and making Christmas gifts – knitted or embroidered. Read it here: “Wizardry with a needle”

Yesterday, the BBC website ran an interesting article on how knitting can help to stop smoking.

As we're always looking for ways to improve this site, we will aim to publish knitting news on a weekly basis, collating all the interesting items together in one go.

Swiss Knitting Championships

2005-11-22T02:38:00.000-08:00

The TSR (regional TV channel for Swiss Romande) has the results in of the Swiss National Knitting Championships. Read more here (article in French). personally I didn't even know there was a Swiss knitting competition...

Best of: inspiring online knitting sites

2005-11-17T01:32:00.000-08:00

Today marks the start of what I hope will be regular ‘best of’ lists – and we’re kicking it off with a list of the most inspirational online knitting sites. To follow will be reviews of great knitting books, blogs, online yarn stores, patterns, etc. Feel free to send in your ideas for future issues: contact us at snb_geneva@yahoo.com

If you’re seeking inspiration, then the selection below is sure to get creative juices flowing.

By far the most comprehensive and inspiring site I’ve found is knitty.com It has tons of patterns, and if you rummage in their archive, many interesting articles on the art of knitting and related weird and wonderful subjects.

Donna Wilson has the enviable life of being a knitting artist and her work has been featured in everything from Elle Decoration to Vogue.

Ace Chick’s site is inspiring because of the sheer volume of items she produces. featuring contemporary projects, she turns her hand to everything from funky cabled hats, to striped socks, chunky scarves.

Finally, and its not strictly knitting,Six and a half stitches, with its beautifully sparse design, is an online showcase for this girl’s extraordinary talent for sewing, photography, crewel-work, and über funky embroidery.

Paris Picks Up the 'Tricot' Trend

2005-11-14T01:47:00.000-08:00

Those in the know have realised for a long time that chicks with sticks are at the vanguard of a movement that is hailed as the new rock ' n roll. Only natural then that the media are way behind us when it comes to reporting what's happenening on the street. But we shall forgive them, as it's still nice to see knitting in the news. Here's an article from this weekend's Figaro magazine (in French) about the knitting café craze that is sweeping La France.

Feed your habit: Knitting Magazines

2005-11-10T03:35:00.000-08:00

Not many of these around in Switzerland, although the vogue for knitting has been picked up on in the UK, spawning a new rag - Simply Knitting. (If anyone spots it in Geneva, let me know!) It's not bad, although it would be better if it picked up on the fashionable take on knitting that Rowan does so well.

Anyone interested in subscribing to Simply Knitting, can do so here.

Angel Yarns, one of my favourite online UK knitting sites, has a comprehensive breakdown of knitting magazines available in English. Take a look.

Knitting and Stitching Show Review

2005-11-10T02:26:00.000-08:00

Although no one from SnB Geneva could attend, the Knitting and Stitching Show that was held at Alexandra Palace in London in October was apparently a great success. One of the main events was the Student Textile Awards brought to you from the British Hand Knitting Confederation featuring fabulous knits from talented students at colleges around the UK.

Other highlights included the knitted wedding, which you can see below:

and items from the fabulously innovative knit2together exhibition (see picture below) hosted by the Craft Council in the UK.

As I mentioned before, our weekly knitting meets are now well established in the Recyclables café every Wednesday night. In the new year our plans are to make this site a community blog for all SnB Geneva members, where we'll be able to fill in member information and post photos of our finished oeuvres.

2005-10-31T03:44:00.000-08:00

As you can see from the general news section, there aren't many knitty events going on locally at the moment. Thus, we've been inspired to create our our own entertainment, and have just held our first Sunday knit-in (pictures to come), which looks set to become a regular happening.

Our weekly SnB meets are now pretty much established at Les Recyclables café every Wednesday from 6.30. We'll probably be using this blog as less of an update on meets and more as a forum for us all to post projects and knitty thoughts.

Eco Friendly Knitting

2005-10-11T08:23:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow's S'nB session will be held in a new place - at "Les Recyclables" cafe on the rue de Carouge from 18.30. Its halfway down the street, near the police station and opposide the big shopping centre. Hope to see you there with your woolly wonders...

Good Knitting Tonight

2005-10-05T01:52:00.000-07:00

Once again we're meeting for our weekly stictching session at the Manor café from 6pm onwards. Hope to see you all there.

(Almost) Making A Name For Ourselves

2005-09-27T21:51:00.000-07:00

News just in is that we've got ourselves listed on the Swiss site www.xpatxchange.ch under Geneva Clubs, which I'm glad about as I feel as though we're making more of a mark.

If you're interested, we're also listed with the other stitch 'n bitch groups worldwide. They haven't added this blog spot yet, but you can see us and check out who else is knitting around the globe by going to: http://stitchnbitch.org/snb_groups.htm#sw

Stitch n Bitch This Week (26th September)

2005-09-26T01:39:00.000-07:00

This week we're merging with other Swiss stitchers and meeting on Wednesday 28th September. It starts from 6pm, at the Manor Café in the Placette department store.

Autre nouvelles: j'envisage de faire ce site en Francais aussi: watch this space!

Knitting Group Merger!

2005-09-22T05:48:00.000-07:00

Tuesday's knitting meet was a great success, with a fair amount of knitting initiating going on as two new non-knitters joined us for the evening. I've heard news of another knitting group in Geneva and I'll post an update soon, but there's thoughts of merging the two groups to create one fabulous set of Swiss stitch 'n bitchers.

You'll also notice that I've added news links and info on great knitting blogs and other sites of general knitting interest, which will be updated regularly.

Watch this space for news about a 'knit-in' in October...

Stitch 'n Bitch This Week

2005-09-19T05:22:00.000-07:00

Great! The cold knitting weather has arrived!

This week's stitch'n bitch will be held at Cafe des Arts (in the Paquis district, a 17 rue des Paquis) this Tuesday (September 20th) from 18.30. Hope to see you there.